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Mayor's Office News

[ARCHIVED] Joint Press Release

City of Alcoa - Patricia Tipton, Public Information Officer & Special Projects 865-380-4787

City of Maryville - Jane Groff, Community Relations Manager 865-273-3406

Blount County Intergovernmental Public Advisory

Governor’s Order to Stay Home Unless Engaging in Essential Activities

Executive Order 23

April 3, 2020

Blount County, Tennessee – On April 2, 2020, Governor Bill Lee signed Executive Order No. 23 amending the previously issued Executive Order No. 22, now requiring Tennesseans to stay at home.

Local government leaders of Blount County, the cities of Maryville, Alcoa, Friendsville and Townsend, and the towns of Rockford and Louisville are issuing a joint statement supporting the Order.

“As Mayors, we need to be able to trust all Blount County citizens to strictly adhere to the Governor’s Orders. Our local law enforcement agencies will continue to enforce these Executive Orders to the extent allowed and possible. We simply need our community and our businesses to do the right thing and only take care of absolute essential business to slow the spread of the COVID-19 virus. Do not wait until it impacts your family directly. We are all taking stay-at-home seriously in consideration of our entire community. It takes all of us to do our part.”

Executive Order No. 23 Summary:

Executive Order 22, dated March 30, 2020, is amended by deleting Paragraph No. 1 in its entirety and substituting the following language instead:

"1. Safer at Home. Because staying at home as much as possible for a temporary period of time will protect the health and safety of Tennesseans by limiting the spread of COVID-19 and preserving health care resources, all persons in Tennessee are required to say at home, except for when engaging in Essential Activity or Essential Services as defined in this Order.

All remaining provisions of Executive Order 22 remain in full force and effect."

Contrary to current rumor, neither Government nor local law enforcement are requiring essential letters for people to get to their “essential” jobs. A complete list of Essential Businesses and Activities can be found in Attachment A to Executive Order 22.

The fluid nature of the COVID-19 crisis requires the need to re-evaluate constantly. More information will be available as it progresses. To help keep our community informed, this site has been established for the public to find contact information for local governments, schools and public facilities. News and information will also be distributed through our local media outlets.